[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 64 (Tuesday, May 8, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E727-E728]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                JIM BERK

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. HOWARD L. BERMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                          Tuesday, May 8, 2012

  Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I along with Representative Bass of 
California are pleased to pay tribute to Mr. Jim Berk for his 
outstanding contributions to young people and education in the arts in 
our community.
  Mr. Berk began his impressive career in public education at the age 
of twenty-one as a music teacher at Carson High. He reopened Carson's 
music department and quickly built it into one of the largest programs 
in the State of California. When he left Carson High, Jim went to 
Alexander Hamilton High School in Los Angeles. Together with a 
committed group of educators, teachers, and parents, Jim founded the 
Hamilton High School Academy of Music, which is now the largest 
comprehensive performing arts magnet program in the western United 
States. The Music Academy is now a treasure in our school system. For 
1,000 students every year, it is a special place with a richly diverse 
campus that provides world class arts education that transforms lives.
  Mr. Berk's commitment to the students of Hamilton High deepened when 
he was appointed Principal of the Alexander Hamilton High School 
Complex in 1990. He became the youngest principal in the history of the 
Los Angeles Unified School District, and in that position he instituted 
an interdisciplinary curriculum combining both academic studies with 
the arts. During his tenure, an astounding 96 percent of graduating 
seniors at Hamilton went on to pursue higher education, attendance 
improved an impressive 22 percent, hitting 94 percent overall, and the 
schools rating jumped from the 34th percentile to the 81st in state 
assessment scores.
  This year, Hamilton High's Academy of Music is celebrating its 25th 
year. At a time when so many arts and music programs in public schools 
are struggling, the community of support that has grown around 
Hamilton's program is working to ensure that it has the resources it 
needs to continue in its proud tradition of excellence. In the 25 years 
since Jim Berk helped to make the Academy of Music a reality, it has 
maintained a reputation as a crown jewel of public arts education, even 
as he has carried his skills and dedication to other endeavors.
  Mr. Berk's long-standing commitment to our public schools was only 
the start of his many contributions to our community and to the arts. 
As the founding executive director of the National Academy of Recording 
Arts & Sciences Foundation, he helped to shape the Foundation's 
commitment to cultivating an understanding and appreciation of the 
contribution that recorded music has made to American culture through 
musical events that engage the recording community, as well as the 
general public. Mr. Berk later became President and CEO of Hard Rock 
Cafe International where he also served as CEO of the Hard Rock 
Foundation. Through the Foundation Mr. Berk helped to provide 
education, social action grants, and thousands of hours of volunteer 
services to local charities and schools.
  Mr. Berk continues to make a difference in the community through his 
current position as CEO of Participant Media, an entertainment company 
that focuses on socially relevant, commercially viable feature films, 
documentaries, television, and digital media. During Mr. Berk's tenure, 
Participant Media launched TakePart.com, a social action website that 
hosts an extensive network of cause-related sites covering an array of 
social issues as well as ways for individuals to take action. The 
company has also invested in Me to We, a social enterprise which 
promotes a socially responsible, globally-focused approach to living 
for young people who want to help change the world through their daily 
cht5ices as consumers.
  Mr. Speaker and distinguished colleagues, we ask you to join us in 
recognizing Jim Berk for his years of service and dedication to arts 
education and our community.

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